Meet the Speakers: Stan Cottrell

As an athlete… Stan runs an uncommon event – UltraDistance – has clocked over 200,000 running miles, set world records, received innumerable awards.

As a speaker… Stan captivates audiences throughout the world with his humor and his unusual perspective of human nature.

As a businessman … Stan’s message of motivation and achievement has set him apart on both national and international levels.

As a world figure … Stan has been honored by dignitaries and heads of state throughout the world – across all cultures, theologies and political systems. His non-controversial, apolitical stance knows no such boundaries. Using his unique running gift that has made him THE super-ultra-runner in the world, he has spread friendship

and understanding between and among peoples and nations as a powerful Goodwill Ambassador.

The son of a rural Kentucky farmer, Stan started his climb from the bottom. He began his extraordinary running career at the age of 12, when he won first place at a county fair race.

Stan’s “Friendship Runs” – ultra-distance treks across entire countries have brought nations together in friendship, and his words have inspired millions. In China, for example, he covered 2,125 miles in 53 days, averaging 40 miles a day. That’s like running nearly two marathons every single day for two months!

Stan’s extensive background as an entrepreneur and in all phases of corporate life has uniquely prepared him to translate the message of success and inner strength from his life to his listeners. Audiences have been astonished at his unique ability to help us find ways of turning our dreams into reality. He touches them in heart, thought and spirit whether in the auditorium, open-air amphitheater, classroom or informal throngs on the street during his Friendship Runs.

Now, Stan and his team want to expand the borders…literally to every nation, colony and territory known to the world today. Stan has answered the call to The Lord’s Last Great Commandment…“The Great Commission” as recorded in Matthew 28:18, 19 by going into all the world spreading love, hope and help while also raising funds to help care for the orphans.

He has seen firsthand the power, magnitude and appeal of running… just running, no competition… with people just showing up and running as little or as long as they want to go with him, or simply following him at evening stops, or celebrating with him at the finish line. He has seen the magnitude of what it means to “show up” with no agenda other than the childhood beckoning of “Let’s go play.”

The word is beginning to spread in geometric proportions. Daily, people of influence and organizations are answering the call that they, too, can be a part of this great

initiative with their gifts, influence, prayers, and encouragement. There is nothing too small and unimportant… every component part is vitally needed.

From the well known to the unknown, from the palaces to the White House, from the rice paddies to the cotton fields, people come… and for a few moments, for Stan and all who run, stand on the sidelines, or extend a handshake or a smile… the world is changed for all time. It is so simple that children understand this the world over.

Stan runs. New ground is cleared. The fields are prepared for the planting. Stan is often asked, “How do you run the way you do? What motivates you to do these treks across nations?” Stan shares the driving force of his life, and how each person has a unique gift to make a difference.

He shares his stories of victory, triumph, and we are all created from the same clay. We are all members of the same family…and created by the Same Father…The Alpha and The Omega; The Everlasting Father; The Ancient of Days; and the one Stan and his team knows intimately as “Abba, Father!”

The actual running serves as a forum…an attraction magnet…which opens doors of opportunity to witness firsthand the miracles of God and of changed hearts. Yes, there are the planned activities which have been bathed and immersed in prayer…and then, daily, we watch God open doors, remove mountains, make crooked roads straight, and rough roads smooth as ONLY GOD can do! Each day, we know our cup runneth over. Each day, many come forward and say, “I believe”.